State partners with Missouri Pharmacy Association to distribute vaccines to local pharmacies

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Pharmacies across Missouri will begin receiving prioritized shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine through a new State Pharmacy Program. 

“With vaccine supply continuing to increase and more Missourians becoming eligible, we will now begin shipping vaccines to pharmacies in all regions and communities throughout the state,” said Gov. Mike Parson said during Thursday’s COVID-19 briefing. “Local pharmacies are a trusted health care resource for many Missourians, so distributing vaccines to as many pharmacies as we can will help expand accessibility by providing a vast network of capable providers in every community.”

Starting next week, 15 percent of Missouri's weekly vaccine allotment from the federal government will be allocated to the state's pharmacy program. 

The state has identified 161 pharmacies in 84 counties based on ability, location, and population. These pharmacies have the ability to administer 200 initial doses of COVID-19 vaccines per week and will consistently receive this number of doses in addition to booster doses for the next three to four weeks.

In Region E, pharmacies that will administer the vaccine include: Advance Pharmacy in Advance, Key Drugs at Dexter, L&S Pharmacy in Charleston, Brewer Drugs Inc. Beauton Drug in East Prairie, Main Street Pharmacy in East Prairie, Butler Drug Store in Portageville, Gideon Pharmacy in Gideon, Medical Arts Pharmacy in Sikeston, Chaffee Drug Store in Chaffee, Park Pharmacy in Cape Girardeau, John’s Pharmacy LLLP in Cape Girardeau, Jones Drug Store in Jackson, Twin City Pharmacy in Marble Hill, ECB Pharmacy Inc. Hayden Pharmacy in Caruthersville, SEMO Drug of Kennett, Wilkare Pharmacy in Malden, Key Drugs in Poplar Bluff, Eastside Pharmacy in Poplar Bluff, Town and Country Pharmacy in Piedmont, E&S Pharmacy in Doniphan and Super Saver Pharmacy in Doniphan.

The Missouri Pharmacy Association will submit orders to the Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) on behalf of partnering pharmacies. Missourians are encouraged to use the state’s vaccinator map at MOStopsCOVID.com to find participating pharmacies in their area or reach out to local pharmacies directly. 

Allocations for each of Missouri’s vaccine delivery channels will be adjusted accordingly to accommodate pharmacies. Delivery channels and corresponding allocations through the week of March 22 are as follows:

• High Throughput Health Centers: 35 percent

• Mass Vaccination Events: 15 percent 

• Local Public Health Agencies: 15 percent

• Federally Qualified Health Centers: 15 percent 

• Other Community/Enrolled Providers: 5 percent 

• Pharmacies: 15 percent 

Starting the week of March 29, the state will shift vaccine allocations to reflect unvaccinated eligible populations in each of Missouri’s nine regions. Current delivery channels will be modified to incorporate those changes.

Also during today’s briefing, Governor Parson outlined modifications to state sponsored mass vaccination clinics.

“While distribution is equitable based on population throughout each region, we do recognize that some Missourians are less interested in receiving a vaccine than others,” said Parson. “Vaccine interest is often highest in urban populations, so starting next week, we will begin transitioning mass vaccination teams to accommodate more events in the Kansas City and St. Louis regions.” 

Starting the week of March 8, mass vaccination teams will begin transitioning operations to include a larger presence in Region A (Kansas City) and Region C (St. Louis). Eventually, two teams will be operational in Region A and three teams will be operational in Region C. The state expects a full transition by April 1. This timeline will allow vaccination teams to complete booster clinics for previous Moderna and Pfizer events and transition to the single dose Janssen vaccine. 

Both mass and targeted vaccination events hosted by the state will begin utilizing the Janssen vaccine as supply allows. This will help increase the scale and efficiency of state sponsored clinics as vaccination teams will not need to return to locations for booster (second) dose vaccinations. 

Missourians are encouraged to visit MOStopsCOVID.com to view the latest vaccine updates, find out when they are eligible for the vaccine, and locate available vaccinators in their area.